Expendible golf bag



March 22, 1955 H. M. GORDON 2,704,562

EXPENDIBLE GOLF BAG Filed Dec. 6, 1951 INVENTOR M172. M1!

ATTORNEYS United States Patent EXPENDIBLE GOLF BAG Hugh M. Gordon, Roanoke, Va.

Application December 6, 1951, Serial No. 260,193

4 Claims. (Cl. 1501.5)

This invention relates to expendible golf bags.

Many golfers do not wish to pay for the services of a caddie, and there are others who do not find a caddie available at the course. In either instance, golfers find it burdensome to carry the conventional heavy duty golf bag with the full complement of clubs, about the course, so that there is a promising field for a light weight inexpensive bag to be stocked by the golf club store, which may be purchased by the golfer upon his arrival at the course, for a relatively few cents, to which he may transfer from his regulation bag such clubs as he feels he will need for the game, and which he may discard without any qualms at the end of the day, or if he is economically minded, may make it do for one or two more occasions.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a paper golf bag so constructed as to be strong enough to hold the clubs, preferably waterproof so that it will keep the clubs dry, and resist disintegration when laid in the dewy grass or subjected to a shower.

Another object of the invention is to provide a paper golf bag having an adjustable strap, affording in one position of adjustment, a handle bight, localized near the mouth of the bag so that the latter assumes a vertical position when picked up by the handle, facilitating the withdrawal or insertion of the clubs, and which in another position of adjustment overbridges a balance point in the length of the bag, which permits the latter to be carried by the handle in a horizontal position.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable strap handle for golf bags, including a flexible strap extending substantially from end to end of the bag secured at its ends to the opposite end portions of the bag, in conjunction with a floating band surrounding the bag girthwise, giving circumferential support to the bag and slidable along the intermediate portion thereof, the longitudinal strap being freely looped once about the band, whereby the latter becomes a means for adjusting the strap handle to form a small bight near the mouth of the bag for lifting it or carrying it vertical, or an elongated bail overbridging the point of horizontal balance of the bag for carrying it in a horizontal position and for carrying it slung upon the shoulder, this form of handle being applicable also to other than expendible bags.

Other objects of the invention will appear as the following description of a practical embodiment thereof procee s.

In the drawing which accompanies and forms a part of the following specification, and in the several figures of which the same reference characters have been used to denote identical parts:

Figure l is a plan view features of my invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation;

Figure 3 is the blank from which the body of the golf bag is made, one corner being down-folded to show the laminated waterproof construction, and the lines of the bellows folds being shown in the lower portion;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of the lower part of the bag, taken along the line 44 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a section along the line 5--5 of Figure 4.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, the numeral 1 represents a paper bag made from tubular stock, adapted to stack substantially flat when collapsed, and being inpleated at opposite sides in conventional manner, as shown at 2, to form a flat bottomed bag when it is expanded. The lower portion of the bag preferably tapers toward of a golf bag embodying the "ice i the bottom, as at 3. The opposite walls 4 and 5 of the tubular structure are cemented together marginally at the lower end, and the margins thus united are over-folded and cemented to the adjacent outside face of the tubular lsjtructure, as shown at 6, to complete the bottom of the For the sake of moistureproofness and strength, the bag 1 is preferably made from laminated stock, consisting of two plies of paper surface-bonded together by a suitable film, indicated by the numeral 7, of moisture impervious material, such for example as bitumen cement.

The mouth of the bag is stiffened and strengthened by the provision of a suitable cuff 8. The cuff shown in the drawing consists of a binding of corrugated fiberboard, with the corrugations 9 arranged longitudinally with respect to the bag, said binding being folded to form a deeply channeled annulus, into the channel 10 of which the end margin of the tubular structure is inserted. The cuff is suitably secured to the mouth margin of the tubular structure, staples 16 being employed in the embodiment shown.

A handle 11 extends longitudinally adjacent one face of the bag midway between the side edges thereof. This handle is preferably a flat strap made from the same stock as the bag, folded double with its longitudinal edges lapping, and being cemented together in a seam 12, which preferably occupies a mid position on the under side of the strap. The ends 13 and 14 of the strap handle are incorporated respectively in the bottom structure and the cuff binding of the strap. The end 13 is inserted between the plies of the over-folded margins of the tubular stock and cementitiously secured therebetween. At the mouth end of the bag it is desirable for the end of the strap handle to extend outwardly from the mouth, so the cuff has a slit 15 at the line of fold, into which the end 14 of the strap is inserted inwardly to underlie the outer fold of the cuff, in which position it is cementitiously secured. Staples 16 are employed at each end for additional anchorage.

A closed annular band 17 of construction similar to that of the strap handle 11, freely surrounds the bag girthwise in an intermediate zone, being of substantially the same diameter as the bag, and slidable longitudinally thereupon. One of the functions of the band 17 is as a reinforcement to strengthen the middle portion of the bag. It also affords a means of adjustment for the strap handle 11, the latter being freely looped once about the band 17.

By sliding the band 17 toward the mouth of the bag, correspondingly shifting the loop of the strap handle which embraces it, a small bight 18 is formed in the strap handle adjacent the mouth of the bag, by means of which it may be lifted from the ground to a vertical position convenient for withdrawing or inserting a club. By shifting the band toward the bottom of the bag, the bight 18 is elongated to a size that fits the shoulder, so that the bag may be slung over the shoulder for carrying it from one green to the next. The band may be similarly adjusted to extend the bight 18 sufliciently to overbridge the point of horizontal balance of the bag with its component of clubs, so that the bag can be carried horizontally by means of the strap handle. The weight of the bag and its contents tightens the loop of the strap handle about the band 17, so that it will not slip while the bag is suspended.

The golf bag as above described may be manufactured inexpensively so that it may be sold within a price range that justifies its being regarded as a single use item, alalthough its construction gives it ample strength to survive reasonable repeated use. It can be stacked flat for shipment or display, and is a logical item to be stocked by golf club stores. Due to its waterproof character, it affords the same protection to the clubs as the more expensive conventional bags, and it may be laid on the wet grass without material deterioration. The conveniences afforded by the adjustable handle feature have already been described, and give it advantages in use and in transgortation that are not present in many of the more costly ags.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the specific details of construction and arrangement of parts, as disclosed, are by way of example and not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. Expendible golf bag comprising a flat-foldable tubular structure of paper the opposite sides of which at one end are upfolded and cemented together into a closed seam, said seam being cemented to the area of said tubular structure that it overlies forming a region of plural ply thickness constituting part of the bottom of said bag, a peripheral reinforcement about the mouth of said tubular structure secured thereto, a strap handle of paper having its ends secured to said tubular structure respectively at said mouth in the area of its reinforcement, and in said region of plural ply thickness at the bottom, said tubular structure having re-entrant bellows folds at opposite sides adjacent its closed end providing a fiat bottom when the bag is expanded, and an annular supporting band of paper separate from said strap handle, freely embracing said tubular structure girthwise in an intermediate zone, slidable longitudinally therefrom, said strap handle being freely looped about said supporting band.

2. Golf bag comprising a flat-foldable tubular structure having a closed bottom, flat when the bag is expanded, and a peripheral reinforcement about the mouth of said tubular structure, a strap handle extending longitudinally of the bag having its ends anchored respectively at the bottom and mouth of said tubular structure, an annular supporting band separate from said strap handle freely embracing said tubular structure girthwise in an intermediate zone, and slidable longitudinally thereupon, said strap handle being freely looped about said supporting band.

3. Expendible golf bag comprising a flat foldable paper bag, a paper strap handle extending longitudinally thereof having its ends anchored to said bag respectively adjacent the bottom and adjacent the mouth, and a closed '4 paper supporting band of fixed perimetric length, separate from said strap handle, freely embracing said bag girthwise in an intermediate zone and slidable longitudinally thereof, said strap handle being freely looped about said supporting band.

4. Expendible golf bag comprising a flat foldable tubular structure made from laminated stock comprising inner and outer paper sheets surface bonded by an intervening film of moisture impervious cementitious substance, the opposite sides of said tubular structure at one end being up-folded and cemented together into a closed seam, said up-folded end in the region of said seam being cemented to the area of said tubular structure that it overlies forming a region of plural ply thickness constituting part of the bottom of the bag, a peripheral reinforcement about the mouth of said tubular structure secured thereto, comprising a cuff of corrugated fiberboard with the corrugations extending longitudinally of said bag, said fiberboard being overfolded to form a channel into which the peripheral margin of said tubular structure is seated.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 307,431 Brown Nov. 4, 1884 551,611 Appel Dec. 17, 1895 749,834 Beisel Jan. 19, 1904 1,174,552 Dubois et al Mar. 7, 1916 1,610,344 Williams Dec. 14, 1926 1,732,098 Lessenhop Oct. 15, 1929 1,791,178 Walker Feb. 3, 1931 1,878,118 Douglass Sept. 20, 1932 2,126,833 Steinberger Aug. 16, 1938 2,292,295 Royal Aug. 4, 1942 2,394,782 Kalske Feb. 12, 1946 

